CHAPTER ONE
cA. Symposium of 'Rowing History
HE earliest days of the art of rowing are "wropt in mystery", but it appears that the Greeks were the first Tto indulge in actual rowing races. We are told that the oar brought the Phoenician laws and civilization to Greece: it was the oar that propelled the Hellenic fleet to Troy: it was the oar that saved Europe from Persian despotism: it was the skilled use of the oar by free citizens which was the glory of Athens in her prime. Virgil's Aeneid describes a Trojan regatta with an oars• man's passionate appreciation of his art; pallid indeed is your cub reporter beneath the powerful imagery of such a master of description. Says Mr. R. C. Lehmann, that renowned author on rowing, commenting on thie classic encounter:- "How Gyas, the captain and coach of the Chimaera-• 'Huge bulk, a city scarce so large with Dardan rowers in triple bank, The tiers ascending rank o'er rank.' -How Gyas, as I say, justly indignant at the ineptitude and cowardice of his coxswain, hurled him from the vessel, and himself assumed the helm at a critical point of the race; it is a mere paltering with the emotions to be told, for instance, that 'Mr. Pechell, who owes much to the teaching of Goosey Driver, steered a very good course,' or that he 'Began to make the tlioot for Barnes Bridge a trifle too soon'." "How, too," says fAhmann, "can the statement that 'both crews started simul• ,ipeously, Cambridge if anything, striking the water first,' ,...... �e with Virgil:- 'At the trumpet's piercing sound, ,bound, All from their harriers onward rs to heaven the oarsmen s shout U psoa d t : The upturned billows froth an spou ' In level lines they plough the dee� All ocean yawns as on they sweep . We continue with Lehman n's witty account:- · that no one else seems to have felt "It may b e no ted m pas.,s ing in the least inclined to yawn. for 'With plaudits loud and clamorous zeal Echoes the woodland round; The pent shores ro11 1 he thunder peal- The stricken rocks rebound;' which seems, if the criticism may be permitted. a curiou proceeding even for a stricken r�� during the _progress of boat-race. Finally a touch of religious romance is added who we i...m that the final result was due, not to the unaided efforts of tJae straining crew, but to the intervention of Portunus, the Barbour God, who, moved by the prayer of Cloanthus, captain ot. the SC11lla, pushed that barque along and carried her trium• phantly Ant into the haven-invidious conduct which do s not appear to have caused the least complaint amongst the defeated crews, or to have prevented Cloanthus from being proclaimed the victor of the day. Only on one occasion (in 1859) has Father Thames similarly exerted himself to the advantage of ODe of the University crews, for during the boat-race of that year be namped the Cambridge ship beneath his mighty waves, and 1pm Odord -.fely to Mortlake. Befon I take leave of this Virgilian race, I may perhaps. eva at this Jate date, be permitted as a brother coach to com• �te the impulsive but unfortunate Gyas on the difficulties �ut bave encountered in coaching the crew of a trireme. '- do I pity his oarsmen, of whom the two lower ranks ;.: baYe ldered aeriously �s to their backs from the feet of plleed above them, while the length and weight of the :a� the top rank. must have made good form and alm01t impossible. A Cambridge poet. Mr. R. H. 3
Forster, has sung the woes of the Athenian triremists and their instructor:- 'Just imagine a crew of a hundred or two Shoved three deep in a kind of a barge, Like a cargo of kegs, with no room for their legs, and oars inconveniently large. Quoth he, 1 1r&.v-res 1rp6crw,' 1 and they try to do so. At the sight the poor coach's brains addle; So muttering ' olµo,,' 2 he shouts out 'f-roiµo,,' 3 And whatever the Greek is for 'paddle'. Now do look alive, number ninety and five, You're 'sugaring', work seems to bore you; You are late, you are late, number twenty and eight, Keep your eyes on the man that's before you.' So much for the trireme. But neither the Greeks nor any other race thought of adapting their boats merely to purposes of racing until the English, with their inveterate passion for open-air exercise, took the matter in hand. African war-canoes have been known to race, but their primary object is still the destruction of rival canoes together with their dusky freight. In Venice the gondoliers are matched annually against one an• other, but both the gondola and the sandolo remain what they always have been-mere vessels for the conveyance of pas• sengers and goods." Turning to the authoritative, although less enlivening, Encyclopaedia Britannica we find that the word "rowing" is derived from the Old English "rowan=to row". Despite the existence of a class of professional oarsmen or bargemen for many centuries it was not until around 1800 that amateur racing really began. "The earliest historical records describe battles and voyages in which the ships were propelled by oars. There must, of course, have been from time to time friendly trials of speed between these ancient craft, but there is no record in classical or even in medieval time of rowing having been indulged in solely as a recreation, or as a means of promoting athletic contest. The absence of any element of competition is sufficient to account 1. Forward all. 2. Woe is me. 3. Ready. 4 . � d the method of rowing- b t� the oars, an Ii f-Or the fact that the . oa sd but little from those of the ear rest in the 17th century d1ffe re times. . Britain abounds in inHtances of t�e The hi�tory of Great. B 'tons propelled themselve� m t h use of the oar. The ancien d �� ;kins by means of paddles f . kerwork covere w1 • ' • 1 coracle� o wic the Saxon� were expert oarsmen, as a so bu rather than �rs, � N egian invaders. It is recorded by were the Danish an that the Peaceable was rowed in ·1r of Malmesburv a Edgar . WJ iam . . . eizht tributary kings, himself acting state on the river D ee by e as coxswain. d ft · th l Ith and 12th centuries, when roa s were o en D urmg e · · f · ble eonsiderable use was made of the various rivers o 1mpassa , • d h England for the transmission of both passengers an 1:1�rc an- dise: and, until the introduction of coaches, the nobility and ,.entry who had mansions and waterga�es on the banks of the Thames relied almost entirely upon their boats and elaborately fitted barges as a means of conveyance from place to place. This use of boats and barges as a means of conveyance for merchandise and passengers provided a means of livelihood for a class of professional oarsmen known as bargemen or water• men. They were professionals, not in the sense of professional athletes, but because they made their living by rowing and navigating passenger and other craft along and across the Thames. Watermen as a class are mentioned in history as early as the 13th century. The distress occasioned to them by the long frosts is referred to in the chronicles of that period. Thev are. ment�oned as having been employed to row the barons and �heir retmu� to Runnymede for the signing of the Magna � by Ki?g John, �nd about the same time several of the �ity companies established barges for the purposes of proces• ;0�� and ot�er pageants upon the Thames. It is stated bv a ian that m 1454 'Sir John Norman then Lord :\I . �f London, built a noble bar t hi ' ... ay or o by watermen "th ge a is own expense and was rowed ;sses:·1e erb companies as � oars, �ttended by such of the city Lord M r' . arges, in a splendid manner , Th ayo s procession by water t W . . e estmn ster until. 1856, the state barge of the L o � was annual l\Iayo� species of shallop rowed by . t ord being a magnificent wa ermen, while those of the city ) companies w.ere propelled by a double bank of oars in the f ire half. the after part consisting of a cabin which . ome h t resembled that of a gondola. In 1514 and in 1555 Ac Parliament were passed for the regulation of watermen an boats and fares upon the Thames, and from the term statutes there can be no dou ht that there were in t century a considerable body of men who lived by the ' Rowing' as it is there called. During the 16tl centuries there were no doubt competitions from tim between these watermen, but 1 he first actual m n 1 n racing is the record of the establishment in 1715 of n Coat and Badge. Mr. Thomas Doggett, w ho may described as the founder of modern boat-racing, wa a c comedian. He established a fund to provide an annu l a waterman's coat with a large silver badge on the rm race was founded in honour of the House of Hano er commemorate the anniversary of 'King George I' accession to the throne of Great Britain.' The conte t wa take place at the beginning of August and on the Thames b - tween six young watermen who were not to have exceeded the time of their apprenticeship by more than tweh e month Although the first race took place in 1715 the names of the winners have only been preserved since 1791. Doggett'. Coat and Badge is still an annual event, the conditions as to boats to be used and other details having been slightly modified. It is entirely controlled and managed by the Fishmongers' Com• pany. The first English regatta (Ital. regata)-an entertainment introduced, as the Annual Register records, from Venice-s-of which we have evidence, took place on the Thames off Ranelagh Gardens in 1775. Great public interest seems to have been taken in the spectacular aspect of this pageant, the barges of the lord mayor and the city companies being present, but there is no record of the competing wager boats or of the names of the watermen who took part in the races. About the years 1800 to 1810 there are instances of matches between watermen for stakes presented by gentlemen who no doubt made wagers upon the result, and from these professional wager matches it was but a short step to sporting matches 6 When once the 'gentleman thems:lv::red, between the gentlemen hi. evolution, fr.om the as he was called. ppd agaim;t a friend. or ama teur', · llv rowe a ma' tch t 1port1man who occas1ona • amateur oar�man of the presen th er apinst time, for a wager, to rowing which began about the t e e tminster day, was not slow. The am:t � � has flourLhed as a year 1800 on the Thames � d to every quarter of the branch of athletic sport. and has sprea �lobe." . � of a mathematical turn of t ars various person� < f In recen ye o evolve formulae and equations or mind have endeavoured t f back as 1749 the celebrated t Stroke However as ar . the P e rf ec . : d Euler com�idered this pro)11 em · athematician L eon h ar · · · Sw 1ss m . R rum (Chapter 7 of his Scientia . his work: De Actwnc emo . . . . ··1 ) m . t de con�truen
Cambridge in 1826. The first of the encounters between th unti rival Universities was in 1829 at Henley, but it was not � 1839 that the "Boat Race" became an annual fixture. Mr. Sherwood in his Oxford Rowing shows how College racing at Cambridge developed from challenges between "pleasure boats" after a day's picnic. "Fortunately, though the Oxford records are incomplete, the Cambridge racing, which began some twelve years later, has been chronicled from the beginning, and in it we probably see something of the process by which our own races were evolved They started then in 1826 with but two eights, Lady Margeret and Trinity. The boats were commodious, and used largely for picnics and excursions. The former boat had as part of its properties a tin 'Panthermaticon' containing two kettles, nine cups and saucers, nine tea-spoons, nine plates, four dishes, four basins, one box, one salt do., one mustard-pot, two grates, nine egg-holders, nine egg-spoons; and a separate case with one dozen knives and forks, one phosphorus box and blow• pipe, one charcoal bag, one canvas bag marked 'Lady Margeret', four irons and screws for legs of ditto, two tablecloths, six napkins. Other benefactors presented eight sheepskin seats, a horn, and a trumpet. There were no regular races, but one of the two boats would go down the river and lie in wait, sounding a bugle to intimate its whereabouts and to bid defiance to the other, which if it accepted the challenge, would come up and give chase. A race could not take place without the unanimous consent of the crew, for we find that if there was even one dissentient and the coxwain allowed the race to take place, he was fined one guinea." Rigorous discipline was early recognized to be essential for oarsmen in training as these extracts from the Exeter College (Oxford) Boat Club Rules of 1831 will show:- " A fine not exceeding 5s. shall be levied on every one of the crew known to be or to have been in a state of intoxication." "Every member absenting himself from the meetings �f the committee, or being particularly unpunctual, shall be subjected 8 . less he offer such excm�e as will h<' . ot CX('(.>(.ldUIJ{ J :,,. ll n . . " to a hne 11 , t · then pre�ent. dt'('med Aati8fadory to the mcc mg ot her had I·rnguagP either ·} swea r� or L18L'H t.r < • "That nnyom' w 10 ., ""·"' • · , b dow Lhe . boat during the time he may (\ n Ill or OU t O 1· the\, ' ' . " . be fined 1101 oxceediux 5H. TIVl'T, a.,h no} l · f I) ,,t, nnd Oars
Many and varied axpcrimeuts have been made to attain the perfection llf the present racing shell. As an example, glass rods for the slides to run on were used by New College, Oxford, in 1875. who broke four in one day! In more recent times we have seen "stream-lined" boats. and the more general adoption of swivel rowlocks. As yet we have not heard of steel shafted Oars (following the precedent of Golf Clubs). but that may yet come. The sport of Rowing was not of course confined to England �nd, besides being indulged in all over Europe, became popular m America and Australia at about the same time, as is shown by Mr. Lehmann's account in Rouinc :- "T�at lar�e continent, (Australia) with the island of Tas�ania. consists of Rix colonies, in all of which the art is cultivated with more or les enthusiasm. . The first record we ca fi d f . . occurs in 18 . . . n. n o anything hke boat-racing . 18, "hen ships gig races were rowed . th S ·d . Harbour. while the firs . , . 111 e ) ney 1827. In • t. r:gatta was held 111 the same place in 1s8ev32er : \ e .:rcol1 f1a hb- o·1 rn boat, beat � � �� � ere�,·· in a locally built whale- ""' w a mg ships p · of year . in which noth: . ... • . ass1ng over a series u:gthot intere t occurred ... e ti �ore than local and momentan· ' " 11<1 at 111 1858 · · on the present Ch · · m the first race rowed amp1011 courss, the P· . bea t an English sculler . . arramatta Rn-er. Green C.a ndhsh. inclined to regard this• 111 a match for £-100. I am . as the real foundation of New South 9 Wales professional sculling, which afterwards culminated in the performances of Beach and Searle. The sport of rowing, as I gather from Mr. Caspar Whitney's well-known book, was in its infancy in America when it had already taken a prominent place amongst our amateur athletic exercises in England. The Detroit Boat Club, established 1839, was the first rowing organization in America. Next came Yale University, which established a Boat Club in 1843, and was followed by Harvard University in 1846. The first boat-race between Harvard and Yale took place in 1852 on Lake Winipi• seogee, New Hampshire, in eight-oared boats with coxswains."
In concluding this brief survey of rowing history Mr. Steve Fairbairn's remarks may well be quoted:- "So the tradition has prospered. So the beginnings have grown into a science; and so, like all sciences, into a mystery. But with Rowing this sense of mystery not only exerts itself from the beginning but continues. She is a hard mistress; for all sweat and labour she grants, perhaps, the fewest immediate rewards in proportion to her pains-to the tyro a few moments now and then, when the boat runs, and eight oars are one, and he is in heaven. But she keeps a store of reward for age-not the least of which is the memory of companionship united for a purpose."